By: Revanche

Wielding the big pen

October 27, 2009

There are some days when it feels like the big bad news is torrential, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.  Usually you can’t.  But there’s almost always something you can try to make it better: use your words.

I called EDD five times a day since reading that letter, caught in the mill of bureaucracy.  I kicked myself, over and over, for scheduling my trip for the exact day that they wanted a phone interview.  “But,” I thought, “nothing I can do but keep on calling.”  Until I really listened to the voice prompts, and realized one day that they change slightly. They mentioned Saturday service during which most services would not be offered but that representatives would be available to help log online requests.  You’d better believe I was all over that website again, searching for that elusive online option.  I found a series of drop down menus that would suffice, and I wrote a thorough explanation for why a phone interview wasn’t necessary.  They provided a list of some 20-odd questions I had to be prepared to answer: I answered all of them in that form.  At the end of it, I clicked “send” with a prayer.

Result:  Win.

Immediately after receiving those fines, I fired off letters disputing the Toll Evasion Accusations.  In detail, I pointed out all the problems with paying a toll for which the amount was unstated.  I stopped short of making any nasty comments and offered to pay the original toll fee.

Result: 80% Win.  They want me to pay the original toll, plus $10 (vs. the original $50 fee) to cover their collection and processing.  To justify this, they’re calling the judgment “we’re right, but we’ll reduce the fee this one time for you.  Just pay our costs.”  Uh huh.  Jerks.

$39 cost to me, with a $120 discount.

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